(2011) Jordi Arkö

Swedish artist, printmaker, lecturer, and art consultant, Jordi Arkö came to Bethany from Garsås in Dalarna, Sweden. Arkö has studied art history, archaeology, and ethnology at the University of Stockholm College of Design and Fine Arts, and he has a Master of Fine Arts with a concentration in free art and graphic design from the Royal Institute of Arts

Arkö has exhibited around the world, including across Sweden and in the U.S., England, Denmark, Ireland, France, Germany, and Japan. His well-known artworks include etchings entitled Samtal med Goya, “Conversation with Goya,” a 295-foot long tapestry depicting Frans G. Bengtsson’s Viking novel Röde Orm, “The Long Ships,” and over 100 lithographs illustrating the same novel. Arkö has also designed Swedish postage stamps and Nobel Prize diplomas, and he recently designed a new antependium for the Mora church in Dalarna, Sweden.

In addition to making art, Arkö is currently serving on the Swedish Post Design Advisory Committee and is appointed as the artistic expert on the jury for the new Swedish banknote design competition. He is also serving as the vice chairman on the Swedish Fine Art Print Society board at the National Museum in Stockholm, on the Dalarna county council as consultant of fine art, and as chairman of the Mörksugge foundation of Rättvik Culture Centre library.

Arkö has previously held positions as teacher of graphic arts at the Royal Institute of Art in Stockholm, guest teacher at the National College of Art and Design in Dublin, Ireland, and artistic director at Grafikens Hus, Swedish Print Center, in Mariefred, Sweden. Arkö has also authored literature and catalogs about contemporary printmaking art and artists, such as Swedish artist Anders Zorn.

While at Bethany, Arkö was an artist-in-residence at the Mingenback Art Center, taught classes, and worked with Bethany students, faculty, and staff.